So, what’s your story? – The role of storytelling in nurturing inclusive congregational identity

Marilyn Naidoo

doi:10.4102/hts.v75i1.5448

Abstract

South African churches are struggling to form cohesive communities and strategies are needed to bring people together. Because of a deficiency in trust, people are reluctant to get to know each other, impacting on the quality of relationships and a positive sense of belonging and community. Congregations need to find ways to nurture an inclusive identity instead of the current norm of all-white or all-black churches, which can be perceived as being inaccessible or exclusive. Innovative strategies like storytelling can unlock the power to understand each other breaking down prejudice, racism and xenophobia. Because intercultural socialisation is found wanting in congregations, sharing different perspectives and experiences can deepen engagements overcoming superficial interactions. This article expands on how storytelling can be used to facilitate an inclusive and intercultural congregational identity through identity formation, liberative practices of reconciliation, community building and as an educational resource.

Highlights

The church is shaped by how local congregations attempt to ‘give expression to the gospel and received ecclesial traditions in ways appropriate to their local social and cultural contexts’ (Carroll 2000:2)
Reconciliation in churches is a public concern in a society such as South Africa (Naidoo 2017:5)
Narrative pedagogy is essentially learning as an identity project where person narratives can be used so that individuals come to a deep sense of personhood, find opportunities to deepen relations with others, is a springboard for ethical actions and new insights all within the individual’s social, cultural and political context

Summary

Background

The church is shaped by how local congregations attempt to ‘give expression to the gospel and received ecclesial traditions in ways appropriate to their local social and cultural contexts’ (Carroll 2000:2). Narrative pedagogy is essentially learning as an identity project where person narratives can be used so that individuals come to a deep sense of personhood, find opportunities to deepen relations with others, is a springboard for ethical actions and new insights all within the individual’s social, cultural and political context This process results in ‘fuller or richer stories of personhood in relation to what is taught’ (Miller 2003:64). Social class together with ethic, cultural and racial differences play important roles in influencing how people hear, understand and interpret the gospel – how they worship; what hymns and music they appreciate and what needs they bring to congregational involvement. Just as a loving or caring act is completed only when it is received, so a story must be received for it to have meaning (p. 10)

Conclusion

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